The latest report from the independent contractor monitoring Oahu’s public rail transit project echoes what rail leaders first acknowledged publicly in December: that despite their public assurances that the project would come in on time and on budget, the effort will "most likely exceed" what it was supposed to cost.
And after calling rail officials’ "minimal" cost-containment efforts "alarming" in its December report, Jacobs Engineering Group now states that the Honolulu Authority for Rapid Transportation, which oversees the ongoing rail project installation, has recently implemented cost-containment measures in the hope that they will help get a handle on ballooning costs.
Rail currently faces as much as a $910 million budget gap.
Jacobs, the firm that serves as rail’s "project management oversight contractor" for federal transit officials, further flags several concerns in its February report.
» Rail officials are testing a special "bucket" truck they hope will allow Hawaiian Electric Co. crews to service power lines in tighter overhead spaces where the rail guideway will eventually run, particularly along Dillingham Boulevard. Normally, HECO requires a 50-foot offset for crews to service those lines, but the special truck could allow crews to work instead with about 20-foot space, HART Executive Director Dan Grabauskas said.
Nonetheless, the oversight contractor notes that power lines along the rail line might have to be relocated underground. Grabauskas said the project has already set aside as much as $60 million for that potential task.
» HART and the Italian firm contracted to design rail’s operations system, Ansaldo, remain at odds over money that Ansaldo says it’s owed for the nine-month period when rival firm Bombardier challenged Ansaldo’s award of the project. The matter is in mediation, according to Jacobs. Grabauskas said the disagreement revolves around several million dollars. HART and Ansaldo also continue to dispute whether switching to a four-car train model will cost the project about $4 million or save it $20 million.
» Jacobs’ February report also notes several "proposed design changes that may require additional environmental review," but it doesn’t specify further. Grabauskas said that refers to minor changes in the guideway route that would not require supplemental environmental impact statements.
The February report is Jacobs’ first monthly briefing on the Oahu transit project since December.
Instead of a monthly report for January, HART officials said, the firm released a report detailing its quarterly meeting with HART and federal transit officials. The report is posted online and can be downloaded at honolulutransit.org/document-library/fta.aspx.
